An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot and killed a 25-year-old Colombian man, Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, during a traffic stop in Biddeford, Maine, on Monday. The officer has been identified by his ex-wife and other relatives as David Brouillette, a 37-year-old Army veteran, though the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has declined to confirm his name, citing security concerns.

The DHS stated that the vehicle attempted to flee and that the officer discharged his weapon fearing for public safety. However, Ashley Brouillette, the officer’s ex-wife, told US media that she had seen video of the incident and that it did not show the victim trying to strike the officer with his car, as her ex-husband had claimed in a phone call. The victim, who lived in Biddeford with his partner and three-year-old daughter, was not the subject of the surveillance operation; authorities were seeking a different individual with a deportation order, according to the victim’s family lawyer. The lawyer also said Durán Guerrero held permits to work legally in the United States, while DHS said he had entered the country irregularly in September 2023.

Relatives of the officer have described a history of violent behaviour and serious mental health problems. His ex-wife said he had been physically abusive during their marriage and that he asked her to conceal that history after the shooting. A family member shared a voicemail with the Associated Press in which Brouillette said he thought someone should slit her throat. Court records in Maine detail years of abuse allegations, though he has no criminal record. The disclosures have intensified scrutiny of DHS hiring practices, viewed from Washington as the agency expanded recruitment to support the administration’s immigration enforcement push.

The Maine killing is one of several recent fatal encounters involving ICE agents. In Texas, a federal prosecutor this week contradicted earlier DHS claims that a Mexican migrant, Lorenzo Salgado, had rammed a police vehicle before an agent shot him dead on 7 July; the prosecutor said no collision was mentioned in the latest account. Meanwhile, Ricardo Monreal, a senior Mexican lawmaker, has written to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights citing at least 18 Mexican nationals who have died in ICE custody or during operations, and calling for international scrutiny.

Investigations into both shootings are ongoing. The DHS has not released the names of the officers involved, and no charges have been announced. Families of the victims and Mexican officials are pressing for independent inquiries and greater transparency.